Amy Scott's Thoughts

Sharing the thoughts that bounce around in my brain!

I didn’t finish a book… February 9, 2014

Filed under: Amy's Bookshelf,Simply Me — Amy Scott @ 10:48 am

I didn’t finish a book in the entire month of January. Insert shock and awe here. It’s hard to believe. I did read during the month of January. I just didn’t finish the book I was reading. I started Little Women and I do like it. I’m just reading it a lot slower than I would like. After feeling a bit let down in the reading department, I decided to try something new.

I find myself now watching the The Pioneer Woman a couple times a week. Usually when I get home from work on Mondays and Thursdays. Occasionally, I’ll sneak another day in there too. It all depends on what is happening at 2:00pm in our house. I’m finding that 2:00pm is right around the time I need to mentally check out for a half hour and watching Ree Drummond cook seems to be just the ticket. I’m pretty sure I want her to adopt me. That woman has a way with food. My sister has been a long time fan of Ree and so has America for that matter. I’m late to the game when it comes to falling in love with The Pioneer Woman, but it has finally happened. I’m hooked.

But what does watching a cooking show have anything to do with reading? Well, Ree has written a book about her relationship with her husband. It’s their love story and wow, it was steamy! I had heard a great deal about her book (also titled The Pioneer Woman) so it really shouldn’t have come as a shock. I remember April telling me how much she likes her husband. Really likes him. Every inch of him. Her writing style made me laugh a lot and it was fun to see their relationship develop through her eyes. I found myself admiring how many details of their dating relationship she actually remembered. I have to admit that I don’t think I could have written a book about Jeremy and I with that much clarity. Another thing that I’m still tickled by is downloading books. After years of ordering books and waiting for them to arrive in the mail, it’s just a weird thing to just buy it and have it instantly on iPad. I would recommend Ree’s book to anyone who wants to get swept up in a real life love story and could use a good laugh.

I’ve contemplated the place reading has in my life a lot this last month. Because I’m a “reader”, I felt like I let myself down by not finishing a book in the span of a month. Truthfully, there is no law that says I have to read obsessively. I just usually do. Adding things like the a half hour of personal television in the day is also a new thing for me. I never turn the TV on when I’m home alone. All sorts of things are happening to me. Reading less, watching TV more. My self-righteous side is telling me I’m heading down a mind numbing hill. Oh well. I still love to read and when I find a good book I will devour it. I don’t think that will change. I’m just not going to freak out if the rate I read at has changed. I will also let myself off the hook and allow myself to watch a little TV now and then. It’s a nice break.

As you can see from the last week of blogs, I’m finding many different things to fill my time theses days. I have discovered the fun of putting Legos together. Who knew? I have been working on a major projects like reorganizing the mother’s room and moving offices at work. I’ve done a bit of reading. Obviously a lot of my time goes into the happiness of a little 4 month old human… I guess if we were to include all the things I’ve been into lately, I should add that I’m obsessed with the new Switchfoot album that came out on my birthday. Below is a link to my favorite song. It seems to fit me on so many levels right now. And it’s catchy. I could listen to it on repeat!

 

Not Mine December 7, 2013

Filed under: Amy's Bookshelf,Bible,Parenthood — Amy Scott @ 3:24 pm

The Christmas season has me reflecting on Mary. I was thinking about what it must have been like to be the mother of the Son of God. Yes, Jesus was her baby, but she knew that he was here for a deeper purpose than her own enjoyment. She must have known from the start that the greatness of their story would also mean hardship. She would have to keep her open hands with him –  ready to give him back to God. It wasn’t about what she wanted. She had to let go of control and trust that God’s purpose was better than any earthly plans she might have this little life.

I think a lot of life is like. Only in the last few years have I learned how very little I control. This control freak has learned that I can control my own actions and reactions, but everything else is out of my hands. I can relate this now to parenting. Let’s talk about trying for a baby. That certainly didn’t happen on my timeline. Not that I had a timeline, but let’s just say it took longer than I expected. It taught me just how much God is really the author of life. Then there is the pregnancy process. A baby grows inside of you – regardless of what you… Your body just does it. I didn’t have to focus on it and will the baby to grow because the process was already set in motion. I had issues with my blood pressure and there was nothing I could about that. There was no willing my body to do something different. It just was the situation. Plain and simple. During the labor process, I realized that Owen was going to come into the world regardless of what I thought things were going to be like. I was out of control. I had to trust my doctor and make what seemed like the wisest decisions, but I didn’t look at Jeremy say “Let’s have our baby now – this time, this day.” Things just happen and you can go with the flow or you can freak out.

Now that Owen is here, I am reminded that I have no control over him as a parent. I can meet his needs and do my best to make sure he is well taken care of. But that doesn’t mean he won’t cry. It doesn’t mean he’ll always be happy. I can’t just tell him what to do and have him do it. He is already his own person. From the very beginning, I have prayed that Owen will come to know the Lord has his Savior and that he will fall madly in love with Jesus. I pray that he will be a good, kind man. I pray that he will live with integrity and love others well. But… I am not in control of him doing this. Yet again, I can do my best to raise him right, but ultimately these decisions are his.  I can’t make them for him. God has given Jeremy and I the gift of raising Owen and being his parents, but really he is not mine. He is God’s first and foremost. I am only a trusted caregiver. I can do my best but the rest is up the Lord to touch his heart.

Both books that I’ve been reading recently reference Abraham and God asking him sacrifice Isaac on the alter. I find that when something comes up multiple times, God is trying to speak to me. This story flows perfectly with my pondering on Mary and parenting with open hands. Now I didn’t have to wait 100 years to be a parent, so I can only imagine how tightly Abraham wanted to hold on to Isaac. This was the long awaited, promised child. But Abraham was willing to give him up and trust God. Wow. I can’t fathom what that must have been like.  Mark Batterson puts it this way in his book All In, “The truth of the matter is that you can’t really say mine about anything! Nothing belongs to you – not your house, not your car, not your clothes. Every material thing you own is a by-product of the time, talent and treasure God has given you.” While this quote references material items, I would go one step further and say the same is true about parenting.  Owen is a treasure for sure. He is a God given gift. It’s up to me to daily give him back to the Lord and say not my will, but yours. I don’t want to be one of those parents who figure Owen’s life out for him. I don’t want to force my will and wishes on him. I want him to grow up to do whatever the Lord places on his heart. I want to inspire and encourage his dreams, not be an obstacle to them. I want him to be himself, the way the Lord uniquely made him. I want his personality to shine.

Just like most things in life, it’s not about me. It’s about Owen and God and this precious season I have to point a way toward the light. I want to reflect God’s love to Owen. I want to parent with open hands. I want to be willing to follow God’s voice no matter where it leads me. I want to trust that God has a better plan for Owen than I do. Just like Mary, I have to be prepared to let God do what he will. Our kiddos are entrusted to us for a short season and than they’ll be adults doing their own thing and living their own lives. My prayer is that is that I will be a mom who loves deeply and holds loosely. He is not mine. He is God’s. He is not here for my purposes, he is here for God’s. What an exciting opportunity and what a joy to be able to watch his life grow and unfold.

 

Advent December 4, 2013

Filed under: Amy's Bookshelf,Bible — Amy Scott @ 1:47 pm

I love counting down to Christmas. As you can tell, I really get into Christmas. I love the sights and sounds. I love all of it. I love giving and lets be honest, receiving gifts. It’s just a whole lot of fun. The whole month feels like a party. It’s just hard not to feel jolly all the time. However, Christmas can be over commercialized. I understand that the stores make good money off the season. I purchase way too many beverages from Starbucks thanks to that special red cup… The true meaning of Christmas can get lost in all the activity that surrounds this time of year.

I usually do an advent calendar. The last few years I’ve used a homemade one that I decorated myself. It’s a tree with 24 drawers on it. Each day I pull a goodie out of it to countdown the days. My treat of choice is Candy Cane Kisses! Yum! Jeremy has a special peppermint bark candy in the drawers as well. The true purpose of Advent isn’t about a candy in a drawer. Advent is about a longing and anticipation.  It’s about seeking the Savior. The greatest gift ever given is the reason we celebrate Christmas. It’s about God becoming man. It’s about God wanting a relationship with us, bridging the gap, coming to redeem his creation. How can you not long for a holiday with so much hope, so much love? We celebrate Emmanuel! God with us! We are not alone and we are deeply loved.

I’ve never been one to do Advent readings. Usually I have enough on my plate that I don’t have time (or I think I don’t) to add another reading into my life. This year I saw that one of my favorite authors, Ann Voskamp, had a Christmas book out. So I downloaded it (because that is how I roll these days, welcome to the digital era). I wasn’t expecting this, but it turns out that it’s an Advent book. 25 chapters all leading up to Christmas and what Christmas really means. There is a daily Scripture, a devotional thought and some questions to ponder and some action steps to do. Each day is short and simple. I’m finding it’s refreshing to read something daily that reminds me of the true meaning of Christmas. It isn’t just about Christmas music or Christmas cookies or Christmas cards or Christmas movies. It’s so much more. Something so much deeper. I didn’t plan to spend my Advent season this way, but I’m so glad that I am. It’s an unexpected blessing to my daily routine.

Here is a quote that really got to me yesterday, ” Wise men are only wise because they make their priority the seeking of Christ.” I pray that for me and for you. I pray that we would use wisdom and make our priority the seeking of Christ. There is nothing better we can do at this time of year and all year round for that matter. It’s all about seeking Christ. It’s all about looking for our Savior. Anticipating his power in our life. The hope that comes from a relationship with him. I pray that I would make him the first priority of this season. I pray this for you too. Seek the Savior and you will find that the greatest love story of all time can be your story as well. We are a part of the Christmas story because that baby came to earth for us. It’s not a tale from long ago. It’s here and now! These are just a few of the thoughts bouncing around my head today.

 

Going Digital November 9, 2013

Filed under: Amy's Bookshelf,One Thousand Gifts Challenge,Parenthood — Amy Scott @ 4:47 am

It’s been a week since I purchased my iPad mini and I have to admit that I’m really liking it. I almost didn’t want to like it because that would make me less of a “book” person. But, I have been swayed to the digital way. I downloaded a free book app and I just finished The Story Girl by LM Montgomery. I love LM Montgomery and her books are free! I love free! I am on to The Golden Road and then it’s time to download Jesus Feminist by Sarah Bessey. Apparently, I will use my iPad to read Canadian authors! O, Canada! Good stuff! It’s been great to download free books and I didn’t miss the paper page as much as I expected to. This is a new age in my life. A turning point. As Anne of Green Gables would say, a bend in the road. Okay, I’m done with the Canadian references.

Other perks to my iPad would be texting, email and web surfing. Everything is so much bigger than my cell phone, so I’m guessing that is less strain on my eyes. I wasn’t sure if I was going to be able to email from my iPad because of the size. I figured it wouldn’t work as well as a full size computer, but it turns out that emailing on the iPad is pretty easy – even when I’m one handed! It’s great! I’m feeling more connected to the world.

The hardest part for me is when I go to buy Sarah Bessey’s book, it will be an electronic copy which means I can’t proudly display it on my bookshelf. I love looking at my books. They make me happy. I do believe that an electronic bookshelf will never move me in the same way. However, I will admit that for right now and the season that I am, I am giving in.

Right now I’m also contemplating a few other things that might need to go digital. I’m still using my prayer journal, but I’m finding that time to write in a journal is getting harder and that is one task that I really can’t do one handed. At least not well. I’m also still doing my gifts journal in my quest to count to 10,000 gifts, but this is the same issue as the prayer journal. It’s harder to multitask journaling right now.  I’m still doing it multiple times a week, but not daily. The prayer journal isn’t something that I think I want to be digital, but I’m contemplating moving the gifts journal into digital form as well. We’ll see how much of my life continues to become digital now that I have the iPad. At this point, I haven’t used the iPad for blogging, but I’m quickly moving in that direction as well.

So this hardcore book worm and journaler is slowly changing her ways. I want to fight it, but honestly, it’s letting me do the things I love to do in a new way. Using one device for all these things is simpler and it means I don’t have to surround myself with a book, a cell phone, a laptop and multiple journals. Before Owen, I was used to this pile of items surrounding me, but now it’s all on one device. Too weird! Who am I?!?!?! These are crazy times and they call for crazy measures!

 

PAM, Shopping Adventures, Red Cups and More! November 2, 2013

Filed under: Amy's Bookshelf,Family Time,Parenthood — Amy Scott @ 11:37 am
First shopping trip! Note the content baby with the pacifier!

First shopping trip! Note the content baby with the pacifier!

With my days being so busy I now store up a lot little things that I want to blog about. I have a feeling that most blogs will be a little of this and that for a while as I share the highlights of our days and weeks. This week as very full for the Scott family. Wednesday, Jeremy and I took Owen on his first shopping adventure. We hit many stores and he did great! We even had lunch at Chipotle. So far all our eating out endeavors have been drive thru. This was our first time to sit down in a restaurant. Now it’s not the same as an actual sit-down restaurant, but I viewed it as a baby step in the right direction. It was great to spend most of the day with Jeremy even though it was mostly running errands for Fall Fest (our church’s Halloween outreach event). Because Jeremy had a full week with Fall Fest prep, it was great to have whatever time together we could. In way, it felt like old times because we would always run these errands together. Now we just had Owen along for the ride.

Another first happened this week, we gave Owen a pacifier. The first twenty-four hours, Owen really liked it. It was in his mouth quite a bit and he was very happy. Now he takes it about half the time we offer it. He doesn’t really need it all that much, but it’s a nice option! We’re enjoying it!

Happy Red Cup Day!

Happy Red Cup Day!

In the long list of other first for the week, Owen went to Starbucks yesterday for Red Cup Day! Red Cup Day is a holiday in my book and it’s the official beginning of the holiday season for me. I love getting a peppermint hot chocolate in a festive red cup. It just does something for me! Plus, I get to celebrate with people I love! It’s a win-win! The morning started off with a red cup with my friend, Jeannie, and then the fun continued later that afternoon with a red cup with my mom and sister. Of course, Owen is pretty attached these days so he was in tow for both coffee dates. I’m starting him off right! Also, this was a first for me – yesterday was the first time I took Owen out by myself. It was also my first time driving in a month. Thanks to bed rest and having a baby, I didn’t drive the entire month of October! It was a big day all around! And it only got better!

After our Red Cup Day marathon, our little family took off for Portland, Oregon to pick up my new toy – an iPad mini! I’ve always been anti-tablet, but now that we have Owen, I find that I use my phone a whole lot for reading and looking things up. Also, reading a book is harder than scrolling on a screen,so I caved. I feel like a conformist, but it’s cute and little and I’m actually pretty excited about it! I’m hoping that it will help me keep up with my reading and maybe even writing. It looks like my “bookshelf” might finally go digital. I do believe in my heart I will always be a paper book person, but we’ll see if the iPad changes that. On a side note, this trip down to Oregon was Owen’s first trip out of state.

The forest of greeting cards!

The forest of greeting cards!

It’s hard to believe that October is already over! October is Pastor Appreciation Month and it’s always sweet to see our church congregation love on us a little extra. Between Pastor Appreciate Month and having a baby, our kitchen counter has been taken over by a small forest of greeting cards. I absolutely love it! All i have to do is look at our counter and remember all the love and support we have in our lives. Jeremy and I are so blessed to work at Bethel Church and be a part of a church family that we care so deeply about. Pastor Appreciation Month is a fun time and a special one for me. We call it PAM and there is a fun story behind my dad who is a board member at our church (he has been on and off for years) and how once I helped him do a PAM moment for the pastors. That weekend, I just happened to be home from college and of course, bumped into Jeremy on stage. After that weekend was when Jeremy emailed me asking if we could get to know each other better. Oh, young love and Pastor Appreciation Month!

It’s been fun-filled, busy days here in the Scott household. Now that the Fall Fest is behind us and it’s November, I look forward to settling into the holiday season. I listened to Christmas music for a few minutes yesterday. I am excited to start my Christmas shopping. I’m looking forward to yummy Thanksgiving dinners (yes, that was plural on purpose). Also, we have the arrival our second nephew this month. I’m on the edge of my seat to know what the little guy is going to be named. I keep playing the guessing game in my head! It will be so sweet to meet this newest member of our family any time now. Things are good! God is good!

 

Lessons in Trust September 28, 2013

Filed under: Amy's Bookshelf,One Thousand Gifts Challenge — Amy Scott @ 9:52 am

It takes more than one time for me to learn a lesson. The last few years God had really called me out my ability to trust him. Being a natural worrier and an anxious soul is a continuous battle for me. If I say I trust God then why do I worry so much? Why can’t I let go of the details? My words say one thing, but my actions and thoughts say another. Right now it seems that there a lot of things that I can worry about. On a lot of different levels, my life is unsettled. Dwelling and worrying aren’t really solutions. Most of the things that are up in the air in my life can’t be solved quickly and really aren’t dependent on me. It’s just so hard to sit by and trust that it’s all going to work out. However, I am reminded of my reading in One Thousand Gifts by Anne Voskamp. She has this illustration of a bridge and how we go over bridges all the time without really contemplating their structural integrity. We cross over them with little to no thought. We just trust that they are going to hold, because they always have. Right now I see a lot of bridges before me. They lead to the unknown places and may even look a little wobbly to me.  However, God has carried me over many bridges before into unknown territory and the bridges have held. They didn’t collapse underneath me. He has been good, he has been constant, he has been stable. I have no reason to doubt that these next bridges won’t hold when so many bridges in my past have stood firm and taken me further on this great adventure with the Lord.  I take on an attitude of unbelief when I worry and when I doubt. True trust is walking forward, crossing bridges, going into unknown places knowing that God is there and God is good. I wish I could learn this lesson and have it stick. I deeply want to let go and trust God. In fact, in some moments I feel that I have achieved that trusting calm, but then I take it back. I go right back to where I was. Back tracking is not the faster route to what God has in store me. The funny thing is I can be so fickle. Right now I’m wrestling with all these thoughts and all these emotions and trying my hardest not to let fear dictate my life. There are moments, though, where I give up. Mainly, because I’m too tired to worry anymore. In these moments I have a “que sera, sera” attitude – what will be, will be. There is no need to invest so much emotional energy into things that I can not control. It’s a daily choice or even a minute by minute choice to cross the next bridge and trust that with God it will hold.

 

Picking a Plan & Recent Readings September 9, 2013

Filed under: Amy's Bookshelf,Bible — Amy Scott @ 2:09 pm

It’s been a while since I’ve blogged about books and I now intend to remedy that. First off, I wanted to share with you about my Bible reading plan. I decided a few months ago that I was going to get “ahead” in my one year plan so I could be finished by the end of the September. My logic was that I didn’t know what October would hold and I really wanted to complete reading the whole Bible in a year. Getting the plan finished before the baby arrived made sense. I guess it’s a good thing that I can read the Bible like it’s a novel because… I actually ended up finishing my plan in the middle of August. I just got carried away. Not a bad problem to have. This left me with the question, “what to do next?”  I’ve liked being able to use my YouVersion app on my phone to track my plan, so I looked there for a new whole Bible plan. After a lot of tempting options… I decided to do the same plan all over again! I know. I totally lack creativity! However, I decided that heading into a new season, that maybe something familiar would be a good idea. I like that the OwnIt365 plan is a 6 day a week plan. It gives you a day off or a day to get ahead. I like that it reads through the whole Bible only once. Some plans have you read multiple sections twice and that adds to the amount of daily reading time. It takes me about 15 minutes a day of reading with this plan and that is perfect. I guess that if it’s not broke, don’t fix it! I am happy to stay that on September 1st, I started my Bible reading plan again with the hopes if finishing in a year or by the end of 2014. We’ll see how that all pans out!

As for other reading, I’ve been in a re-reading phase. I’ve re-read many good series in the last couple of months – The Hunger Games, The Chronicles of Narnia, The Love Comes Softly Series. I did re-read The Great Divorce by C.S. Lewis though it is not a series. It’s about Heaven and Hell and very thought provoking because it’s done through fiction. It’s a good read and I would highly recommend it. I was torn between a couple of different series to move on to, so I decided to go a different direction for a pause and started Bringing Up Boys by Dr. James Dobson. I have great respect for Dr. Dobson and the Focus on the Family organization, but I will admit that I am couple of chapters in and I’m contemplating not finishing the book. At this point, he hasn’t said anything that I didn’t already know about boys. Maybe working with kids the last 7+ years has given me a better education into the male mind then I realized. I’ll give it a few more chapters… I’ll especially read the one chapter on mothers and sons. I don’t like to stop reading a book it the middle. My perfectionist nature usually compels me to complete every project I start thoroughly… but… I have more novels I could be re-reading on my bookshelf and they seem to be calling to me and drowning out the voice of Dr. Dobson. Poor guy. I’m sure he’ll recover.

That’s what’s been on my bookshelf and nightstand as of late. What books have been reading? Anything good? I’m always looking for new recommendations!

 

Prototype by Jonathan Martin July 13, 2013

Filed under: Amy's Bookshelf — Amy Scott @ 6:20 pm

I love Jonathan Martin’s preaching. I listen to his podcasts from Renovatus, his church in North Carolina. I just love the way he phrases things and his tangents and his southern style (it’s just southern enough to be cool without annoying me – it’s a fine line). When I heard that he was writing a book, I was very excited. My only fear was that I might not enjoy reading his words as much as I do listening to them, but this book did not disappoint. I could hear him as I read and it was the same style that I enjoy so much about preaching.

One of the highlights for me was how he talked about Jesus showing us a new way to be human. I’m a huge Switchfoot fan and they had a big hit called “New Way to Human” so the topic kept making me think of this song. It was a lovely connection that tickled me. The purpose of this book is get back to the basics in a lot of ways. It’s about embracing the fact that you are God’s beloved. When you truly know how loved you are it changes things, it changes you! He talks about how Jesus brought us these new ways to embrace ourselves, our relationship with God and our relationship with others.

One of the main points Jonathan hits is our identity. He used the story of the demon possessed man who when Jesus asked the demon for his name, the reply was “Legion” for there were many inside this man. For the first time I heard this story used to describe us and the overwhelming stimulation and voices we have in our life. It was very powerful to think that we suffer from too many voices, too many screens, too many versions of ourselves in our present time. We can relate to the man with the legion inside. Jonathan writes:

“Instead of being repelled by all the clamor, I rather enjoy being the center of my own universe. So I hear it as, ‘A thousand voices are competing for my attention. I must be really important.'”

This is something I struggled with for a long time. The greater the demand on me, the more I thought I was something special. In ministry, it’s easy to develop a hero complex that puts me at the center of everything, instead of Jesus. After years of frustration and burn out, I’m learning that my life is so much more peaceful when I know my place. When I allow God to define me and not my many roles or the people in my life, I am able to see who I really am. It’s easier to stay focused on what I am supposed to do and what I’m not called to do. In the story of the demon possessed man, his fellow townspeople got scared when they saw him in right mind. Martin brought out the point that in a world full many voices, it freaks people out to be around others who have a peace and understanding of who they are. We are so used to crazy that is the sane people that worry us. That peace that surpasses all understanding can be pretty freaky when you’re used to chaos, clamor and noise.

There are so many other thoughts that I could share from this book. I highlighted a lot! I love  it when I’m highlighting up a book and thinking – “There are other people that get this! I’m not the only one that feels this way!” It’s so reassuring to my soul. In a lot of ways I feel like I live a counter-intuitive life. Not because of the things I don’t do. I’m not taking about the goody-goody Christian behavior list, but more on a gut level of I know who I am, I know what I want to do and I know where I draw the line. I know what feeds my soul and I know what drains me. I am learning more and more to balance my roles and not to wrap my identity up in them. I am learning a new way to be human. One that embraces God’s vision for my life and goes after it knowing that I will not always have fans and be popular because of my decisions, but with Jesus leading the way, I am willing to follow. Prototype is an excellent book that will make you want to follow after Jesus with a great passion!

 

Books, Appointments, Lunch Dates and More! June 7, 2013

Filed under: Amy's Bookshelf,Children's Ministry,Parenthood — Amy Scott @ 11:41 am

I haven’t had much to blog about lately. Life has been full as usual, but it seemed like none of my activities individually were enough to devote an entire blog post to. Sooo… now that the week is winding down, I thought I would update you on what has been going on in my world. There is lots to share now that I’ve stored up my stories!

On Sunday, I finished an awesome book by Jodi Detrick called The Jesus-Hearted Woman. Jodi, who used to be our senior pastor’s wife years ago before they moved on to different ministry positions, shares what she’s learned about endearing and enduring leadership throughout the years. Everything I read was spot on and it really encouraged me to hear these words from someone who has paved the way before me. It also was fun to see the names of many ladies I know sprinkled throughout Jodi’s stories! It’s like knowing famous people! After finishing this great book, I decided to give my brain a break. It’s been months since I had read a novel and I needed some fluffy reading. I’ve now been devouring novels like cake this week! It’s been great! I got three new books in the mail this week which I was supposed to save for the plane and our Hawaii trip, but I’m already done with one and a half them! My current read is Interrupted by Jen Hatmaker. Still to read is Prototype by Jonathan Martin, who is my favorite podcast pastor. I can’t wait!

Baby Scott @ 21 weeks, 3 days!

Baby Scott @ 21 weeks, 3 days!

Monday was one of those days that turned out differently than I expected. I had lunch with a dear friend from the office and then Jeremy and I unexpectedly headed up to Seattle Children’s Hospital to visit a student. His aunt (and caretaker) is a good friend of ours so we waited with her while her nephew was in surgery. I hadn’t planned to spend the day in Seattle at a hospital, but it was worth it! I love supporting the families in our church. We gave Josh a Lego set that he was excited to get home and play with.  I’m glad we were able to pray with them and provide a little joy during a rough time.

Tuesday was our anatomy ultrasound. We got an in-depth look at our little guy! It was great to know that everything looked good and checked out just fine. We were also reassured that we are indeed having a boy! Now if I buy something (which I still haven’t done yet), I can take the tags off! Hurray! It was great to see that our little boy is healthy and still very active! Tuesday evening, Jeremy grilled us some tasty burgers and with the sunshine and warm weather it really started to feel like summer is here! I should note that the official start of summer for me isn’t Memorial Day Weekend, but June 1st. I’m not sure why, but once it’s June –  it’s summer! That’s just how I see things!

Wednesday, I made molasses cookies for my girls class and spent a lot of time reading. I also took a nap! Usually Wednesday is my big clean the house day, but I put that off so I could deep clean later. Our big trip to Hawaii is coming up soon, so I’m saving all my cleaning efforts for a little closer to the trip. I love coming home to a clean house after vacation.

S'more Season Begins!

S’more Season Begins!

Yesterday, I had a lunch with another co-worker. She will soon be moving out of state so I was happy when she asked to get together before she left. I can not tell you how sad I am that she is leaving. She has been a good friend to me and I know that we’ll remain friends even though there will be distance between us. I can’t say that I am happy to see her go, but I am excited for her future and what God has in store for her. Once I got home from work, I did a few things around the house. I took a nap and finished a book! Jeremy and I went for a walk later that evening and then we had the first fire of the season in our backyard! Which of course was accompanied by yummy s’mores! Tuesday felt like summer was here and Thursday confirmed it!

Now that is Friday, I’m looking forward to a bit of a down day. I’ve been working on laundry and formulating thoughts on what I would like to pack for Hawaii. Tomorrow is W.F. West’s graduation and I have many students that I will go to support and cheer on as they receive their diplomas! I haven’t been to a WFW graduation since my own in 2004 so it will be interesting to head back to my high school and sit in those same bleachers that I spent so much time in almost a decade ago. Crazy! It seems like just yesterday that was me!

And that’s all for now, folks!

 

Bread & Wine By Shauna Niequist April 16, 2013

Filed under: Amy's Bookshelf — Amy Scott @ 7:45 pm

As expected, I flew through Bread & Wine. This whole book was about food and preparing food for the ones you love and dinner parties and living life around the table, about nourishing our bodies and  our relationships and our souls. I think the reason I love Shauna so much is because is so different from me. She mentioned that she grew up in a ministry household where the home was sanctuary from the busy world. Her home life was quiet and always wished it could have been a little louder, even though she understood quiet was what her parents needed. I can relate because I feel like my home is my sanctuary. It’s my quiet in a  busy, hectic ministry life. Instead of opening my home to people, I tend to recover in my home and recharge my batteries.

This doesn’t mean that I can’t connect to the idea of nourishing people through food and through relationship. I believe the table is a very valuable place and it is often missing in our fast paced American lives. I love family dinners. I dream of feeding my own family someday and sitting around our dining room and talking about the day. In someways I find that 1950’s housewife role ideal. Clean the house, take care of the kids, make dinner and feed the family. I like the sound of that.

Let’s be honest, I have little to no cooking skills. I’ve tried a few things, but really I’m not a cook. Shauna includes recipes at the end of almost every chapter and I couldn’t help but notice how brave she is with food. Her palette is more refined (in some ways… she admits to loving fake cheese). I’m more of a comfort food kind of a girl. I like simple pasta and burritos and macaroni & cheese and pizza. I’m not really into bacon wrapped dates or salads with feta cheese crumbles. Her recipes sounded interesting, but I’m not sure I would make a lot of them. The enchiladas sounded good and Sarah Bessy made them and agrees. Shauna’s blueberry crisp recipe that she got from her mom also sounded like something I would make.

The hardest part about reading this book was I had the flu part of the time while I  was reading it. It made the food portions sounds less tasty, but the great thing about this book is it about so much more than food. Shauna writes with such honesty about her relationships. Her tales of miscarriage and high risk pregnancy are gut-wrenching. Her closeness to her family and core friends is touching. She shares about her marriage and raising her boys. She writes about her crazy schedule and how the world can flip upside down sometimes. I love these essays because they speak such life to me. They are heartfelt and authentic and they move me to tears. She is so extroverted that I know we could never be alike, but I would love to have her as a friend. Who wouldn’t love someone who cooks all the time and throws awesome baby showers and makes care packages for new moms that include lots of good food. As I was reading this I was thinking about how I could really use a friend like her in a couple months (less than 6 now…).

This book inspires me. It inspires me to step out of my comfort zone and into my kitchen more. It inspires me to share my table with the ones I love. It also reminds me that the Shaunas of the world are there to throw dinner parties and the Amys of the world are here for quiet sanctuaries. We are all different and that is okay. I can learn a lot from people that are different than me and I can love them for what they bring to the table. Any book by Shauna Niequist is a must read in my opinion and her new book is no exception!